consortium
Americannoun
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a combination of financial institutions, capitalists, etc., for carrying into effect some financial operation requiring large resources of capital.
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any association, partnership, or union.
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Law. the legal right of partners in a marriage to companionship and conjugal intercourse with each other.
In a wrongful death action the surviving spouse commonly seeks damages for loss of consortium.
noun
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an association of financiers, companies, etc, esp one formed for a particular purpose
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law the right of husband or wife to the company, assistance, and affection of the other
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of consortium
1820–30; < Latin: partnership, equivalent to consort- consort + -ium -ium
Explanation
Consortium is a fancy word for a group you form for an enterprise beyond what any one member could do alone. All the grocery stores in your neighborhood might form a consortium for the promotion of local strawberries. Consortium comes from the verb consort, which means "to accompany or associate." Consortium used to mean "fellowship, participation, society," but these days you're more likely to hear consortium for an association of different institutions like schools or companies than, say, a consortium of philosophical frog lovers. Still, consortiums usually preserve the ideals of fellowship, with every member institution chipping in to reach a common goal.
Vocabulary lists containing consortium
The Boys in the Boat
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"Simon's Saga," Vocabulary from Episode 25
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The Gene
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Oman proposed a regional consortium to oversee maritime security, but Iran still wants to control the strait and collect transit fees.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
In Tehran this past weekend, Omani officials proposed establishing a Strait of Hormuz regional consortium that would oversee maritime security, search-and-rescue operations and other cooperation, said officials familiar with the matter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
According to the Financial Times, a deal with the Bhatia consortium would value the club at around £4.5bn.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
His decision to step away from the west London club appears to pave the way for him to lead a consortium of investors seeking to purchase a reported 30% stake in the Anfield club.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
Rabi stitched together the new lab’s sponsoring consortium, known as Associated Universities, from nine large Eastern research institutions that would have been hard pressed to compete individually in the multimillion-dollar world of postwar high-energy physics.*
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
But consortia funding these projects include publicly traded companies.
From Barron's ● Apr. 12, 2026
"Most large atlases like this require large consortia with dozens of laboratories but our method is far more efficient than other approaches."
From Science Daily ● Feb. 28, 2026
Yet U.S. officials are again mired in discussions about nuclear enrichment, stockpiled uranium and regional consortia.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 17, 2026
Financial institutions are now forming consortia for cross-border settlement.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 16, 2026
The consortia that oversee shipping include companies from numerous other countries.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2025
As the model continues to grow across the game globally, it remains to be seen just how consortiums will adapt to manage all of their assets, and whether fans will continue to accept it.
From Barron's ● Jan. 6, 2026
The legacy media is facing all kinds of financial reversals, and I think it’s tied up in the ownership of a lot of papers by big corporate consortiums who have to worry about their shareholders.
From Slate ● Dec. 11, 2024
But two consortiums, one involving former Worcester chief executive Jim O'Toole, have expressed an interest in buying the club out of administration.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2022
"However, international treaties and consortiums discourage nuclear testing," the firm said in a report summary.
From Reuters ● Apr. 4, 2022
Abramovich will sell the club after 19 years as owner, with four consortiums locked in a bidding battle.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 2, 2022
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
